Washing-machine



beater with the arms to it Fig. 6,.the fly Vor inch at the ends. Thereis a connecting link ATEN'I" OFFICE.

JOSEPH C. RICH, OF PENFIELD, NEV YORK.

. WASHING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 3,299, dated October 12, 1843;Antedated April 3, 1843.

To all whom t may concern.' y

Be it known that I, JOSEPH C. RICH, of Penfield, county of Monroe, andStateof New York, have invented a new and useful. Improvement inVashing-Machines; and I; do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of thesame, reference being had to the annexed drawings makingl a part of thisspecification, `in whichi Figure l is a perspective View. Fig. 2` isanend view. Fig. 3 is a top vieW-the lids being removed. Fig. 4trepresents the bottom board of the tub; Fig. 5, the

balance wheel; Fig. 7, the crank shaft, and fly wheel. Fig. 8; thespring board and connecting rod attached. Fig. 9, the connecting rod orlink. Fig. 10, the board fastened to the top of the tub on the backside. Fig. 11, the loose board on .the forward part of the tub. Fig. 12,the piece to hold the spring boardV in place. Fig. 13, the grooved pieceof metal fastened to the arms of the beater to receive the ends of thespring board &c. Fig. 14:, the block forming the box for the crank-endof the shaft to run in. Fig. 15, the wash board. Fig. 16, the threecornered piece under the wash board.

To enable others to make and use my invention I will proceed to describeits construction and operation.

I construct a tub T of one an'd a fourth inch plank ten inches deep atthe front side and eleven inches deep at the back side fifteen bytwenty-four inches at the bottom t and twenty-one by twenty-four inchesat the top (or any other size suited to this machine) the ends standingperpendicular the sides flaring so as to fo-rm the tub into the aboveshape. This tub is to rest on a frame U as represented in Figs. 1, 2,and 3. I construct a beater (pletter B Figs. 3 and 5) with arms to itand hang it to upright pieces V as shown at Figs. 1 and 2 fastened tothe sides of the tub so as to swing inside of it to and from the frontside of the tub within half an inch of the bottom. There is to be aspring board E Figs. 3 and 8, of suiiicient length to slide into thegrooved pieces I fastened on each side of the arms B2 of the beater4this spring board should be only two inches at the center tapered tohalf an y e attached to the center of the spring board E-tl1e end of theconnecting link is to be let into the center of the spring board aboutone-fourth of an inch and confined there with straps of iron bent overthe journals on the sides ofit (as shown at E2). These straps of ironare fastened to the spring board with a screw passed through each end;the grooved pieces I may be cast of iron. Iconstruct a horizontal crankshaft about fifteen inches long attached to a fly or balance wheel asshown at letter D; this shaft is to be placed about three inches fromthe back of the tub in such manner that the end of the crank will be inthe center between the ends of the tub, and to be so formed as toreceive the end of the connecting rod or link e on it, thus connectingthe crank to the beater; the straight end of the shaft reaches throughthe side of the tub far enough to hang the ily wheel. The fly wheel Oshould weigh about twenty-six pounds andshould be about sixteen inchesin diameter; the wheel, shaft, and connecting rod may be made or cast ofiron; the crank end of the shaft runs in a box J the other end runningin the hole where it is put through the side of the tub, the springboard is kept from flying out of the grooves by the block or button Hfastened to the arms of the beater. There is to be a handle L fastenedto the wheel to turn it with. I construct a wash board K about teninches wide the length being `equal to the length of the tubJ and fastenit to the front of the inside of the tub. About three inches from thebottom I fasten a three cornered piece m under the edge of the washboard; the crank tothe shaft should be two and a half inches long; theconnecting rod or link e should be about five inches long with a hole inthe end to slide on the crank. Vhen this machine is thus constructed itis ready for use; the clothes to be washed are to be put in front of thebeater with the usual quantity of soap and warm water suficient to coverthe bottom of the tub to the depth of about one inch; then turn thewheel steadily from two to three minutes at the rate of about seventyrevolutions a minute; then draw off the water and clean water and turnit again as above and the clothes will become perfectly clean exceptingvery dirty shirt-collars and wristbandsthese will require some `rubbingon the wash board attached for that purpose; there should be asufficient quantity ofclothes put in the machine at a time to cause thespring board, as the beater is pressed against them, to spring aboutone-fourth of an inch at each revolution of the wheel; the spring boardshould be changed in to the different grooves as a large or a smallquantity of clothes are to be washed at once in the machine. Thismachine is propelled with such force in consequence of the crank shaftbeing attached simply by a connecting rod or link and spring boardimmediately to the beater, with the force of the heavy fly wheel to keepthe motion steady, that clothes can be washed clean in at least half thetime and with half the labor usually required by any other process ofwashing, it is simple in its construction and operation and not liableto get out of repair and is kept in motion with that ease that a childtwelve years old will turn the wheel to do a large washing; it does notIinjure the clothes--the operation of washing them is such that thebeater presses the dirt out of them, and as the wheel is turned theclothes roll over in the machine, so that every part receives thepressure of the beater alike, and the crank is so short, and the poweris applied so near the bottom of the beater, that it requires but littleexertion in turning the wheel to give the requisite force to the beaterupon the clothes. The stationary wash board is another great addition inthis machinewhen it is desired to rub any clothes it is always ready andsaves the necessity of taking the clothes from this tub to another.

That I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent isThe combination of the adjustable spring board E with the beater B andcrank-shaft, D in the manne-r and for the purpose set forth. I

JOSEPH C. RICH. Witnesses:

WM. P. ELLIOT, J. J. ROANE.

